More than 50 polar bears have infiltrated a Russian village, effectively putting it on lockdown amid fears for the human population.
The bears are said to have come to the village of Ryrkaypiy looking for food, mostly in the form of walruses and seals. Members of the local bear patrol said they spotted 56 bears in a one-kilometre area near the shore.
The World Wildlife Fund (WWF) said local residents volunteered to assist the bear patrol in protecting the town, which has cancelled a number of seasonal events.
A gathering of polar bears in this number is said to be unusual, and the WWF said the "decline of the sea ice area due to the changing climate" is forcing an increase in "human and predator encounters".
"If there is enough ice, the bears would go further north to hunt the seals," Mikhail Stishov, Arctic biodiversity projects coordinator from WWF Russia, said.
"Until the ice is not thick enough, they will stay ashore and can visit the village due to curiosity and hunger.
"Spontaneous waste deposits can attract the animals — bears will go for the smell of food waste, regardless of the availability of other food.
"Gathering of polar bears are becoming more frequent, and we have to adapt and find ways to avoid conflicts between people and animals."
